Author: Matt Lamb

There is a particular ACT math question that always raises students’ eyebrows because of an unusual answer choice that they can’t decipher. The question goes: Which of the following is the set of all real numbers x such that x+3 > x+5? (F)The empty set (G)The set containing all real numbers (H)The set containing all…

There’s a strange type of question that has popped up a couple of times on the new SAT exams. A couple of questions on science passages in the reading comp section have asked about an “assumption” made by the authors/researchers in the passage. Even some of my strongest students tend to struggle with these questions,…

Last week we talked about “he or she” questions in the writing section, a rare example of something can “sounds” wrong but is actually grammatically correct. Today, I will once again veer off in a completely different direction and talk about one of math’s more annoying and frustrating concepts: inequalities. Inequalities have always been a…

One of the big strategies I encourage my students to use on the SAT Writing/ACT English sections is sounding out the possible answer choices. When it comes to grammar, wrong answers tend to “sound” wrong, and it is oftentimes easier to identify these problems when saying them in your head as opposed to simply reading…

In my last post I talked about a strategy of eliminating two answers that mean the same thing on the SAT writing/ ACT english section. Today, I plan to pivot abruptly and talk about a specific type of math concept seen often on the ACT: expected value. Expected value questions often appear towards the end…

In my last post I talked about the rules for semicolons, and the big takeaway was that semicolons and periods are the same thing. There is a strategy that I alluded to last time to take advantage of answer choices that mean the same thing, so today I figured would be a good time to…

Today, I want to go over the needlessly mystified concept of semicolons(;). Most people (including myself) never use semicolons, and only know it for taking up valuable real estate on a keyboard. In fact, when I first start working with students and we are discussing relative strengths and weaknesses and areas the students feel they…

In our last post, we dove into one of the hardest math problems I have seen on an official ACT practice test. We used some helpful strategies to narrow us down to two options, even without knowing how the problem works. Today, we talk more about the actual math concepts related to this problem, and…

Devotees might recall that I had planned to write this next post about timelines for ACT/SAT prep. Though this is an important topic and one to which I will certainly return, I want to change gears here and look at an actual ACT problem today. Not just any problem, however. Over several years of teaching…

Last week, I wrote about some of the major differences between the ACT and the SAT, focusing on the structure and content of the tests. Today, we will build off that and discuss how students can decide which test is right for them. First and foremost, students weighing which test is best for them…